Name: Charlie Smith

Party affiliation: Republican

Place of residence: Middletown

Date of birth: Sept. 1964

Place of birth: Baltimore

Current occupation: Deputy State’s Attorney for Frederick County

Education: Bachelor of Science in Finance, University of Maryland, College Park; Juris Doctorate, University of Baltimore, cum laude with high honors.

Community associations, involvement: Member, Rotary Club of Carroll Creek; board of directors, Frederick Rescue Mission; board of directors, Child Advocacy Center; member, Faith Baptist Church; coach, Middletown Valley Athletic Association.

Professional associations: National Association of District Attorneys; Maryland State’s Attorneys Association; Admitted, Maryland State and Federal Bars; Bar Association of Frederick County -member, professionalism committee and member, judicial nominating committee.

Family: Wife, Desiree M. Smith. Four children, Madeline, Harrison, Delaney and Carson.

Campaign office address and telephone: P.O. Box 672, Middletown MD 21769.

Candidate’s Web site: www.charliesmith.us

Link to state Board of Elections campaign finance database

Child sexual predators, gangs and gun violence.

How would you rate the performance of the current state’s attorney: excellent, good, fair or poor? Why?

Excellent. Scott Rolle has done an outstanding job of serving the needs of a growing community. He had the vision to create lauded programs such as the Youthful Offender Program and the Drug Court. Scott has also received the overwhelming support of our county as evidenced in his last three elections.

Given the broad power a state’s attorney has to initiate grand jury investigations and determine criminal charges, what do you see as the most important character trait of the county’s top prosecutor?

Do you believe the state’s attorney should speak out publicly in cases where prosecutors strongly disagree with a judge’s sentence?

I believe that I should fight in court for the sentence that is appropriate, especially representing the victim and their family.

Should the judge render a lesser sentence, then the result should be respected.

Each year the Maryland State’s Attorneys Association lobbies the General Assembly for changes in criminal laws. What, if any, legislation do you believe is needed changed to better protect the public?

I believe that there should be more effective legislation passed to combat gang violence. Currently, there is little law addressing this growing problem.

Is the state’s attorney’s office doing enough to prevent the increase in the number of gangs?

Absolutely. This has been a problem that we recognized early and have addressed aggressively. Last year, I successfully lobbied the Frederick County Commissioners for gang prosecutor. We now have a prosecutor assigned to exclusively deal with these criminals.

I also called together the Frederick County Sheriff’s Office and the Frederick Police Department for a joint meeting and with the advice and consent of Chief Kim Dine and Sheriff Jim Hagy was able to create the Frederick Gang Task Force this year. As the Lead Agency, I submitted and received a $15,000 grant for training and administration through the Maryland Gang Reduction Initiative.

What changes need to be made to laws governing drunk driving?

We need mandatory, no parole sentences for repeat offenders. There are too many repeat offenders serving too little time.

Do you believe state laws need to be changed to charge more juvenile offenders as adults?

Yes. Unfortunately, we have a much more mature juvenile criminal population committing many more serious crimes at their ages. While I still firmly believe that younger juveniles need rehabilitative measures, older juveniles should be waived into the adult system more frequently.